SUPER fund members are being urged to check their funds monthly and pay closer attention to their retirement savings to ensure they are getting the correct payments.

One of the nation’s largest super funds, AustralianSuper, which has more than 2.2 million members, is urging members to set up alerts, particularly on their smartphones, to remind them to keep a close eye on the progression of their retirement savings.

Australians are advised to check their super statements to make sure they are being paid correctly. Picture: iStockSource:istock

The fund’s group executive of member experience Shawn Blackmore said there remained a problem with people not being paid their rightful entitlements, which means they should be proactive in watching their fund’s growth.

“Super itself doesn’t tend to attract you to check your account balance every day with the large cohort of people, but we want people to be engaged with super like they are with their banking,’’ he said.

“We want them to actually to continue to have their super fund in the back of their mind and having a push notification (on their phone) is a reminder about (whether) your employer is paying your super.

“It’s important to keep track of what you are entitled to and understand where it is going and if you are noticing any differences or query you can then investigate them.”

Australians who miss out on superannuation could leave themselves tens of thousands of dollars worse off when they retire. Picture: iStockSource:Supplied

Industry Super Australia analysis of Australian Taxation data found in 2013-14, almost one in three employees missed out on $5.6 billion in unpaid super contributions and for those close to retirement it would lower their balances by about $24,000 on average.

Most super repayments are made by employers on a monthly basis which experts say should result in checking your funds each month.